... [SPOILER] has murdered [SPOILER]!

[learnedax]

Last Thursday cat9 and I went (with a group of people, though that turns out not to matter too much) to see Sleep No More. It was creepy, and vivid, and grim, and I'm glad that I had the experience. But, after lengthy reflection, I don't think that I would want to go again, even ignoring the fact that the full run is sold out.

Comments

[alexx_kay]

"I went in looking for a play, and this has very little of a play in it."

Yeah, several people I know had trouble with that. I did my best to manage expectations, but it's hard when dealing with something so unprecedented.

"The way they handled Banquo's ghost, or the witches' apparitions, or the moving trees, was almost wholly devoid of supernatural qualities. Strangely, the actual actors seemed practically mundane in contrast to the sets they occupied."

I'm just gonna have to disagree with you on this one. I thought all those things had strong supernatural qualities -- but so did *every* aspect of the show, so they hardly stood out in this context.

I did find the Duncan murder rather underwhelming, I admit.

"you are still a passive recipient of the show"

Most people, most of the time. I take it you didn't experience any of the one-on-ones?

[learnedax]

I guess what I mean by them being devoid of supernatural qualities is that I didn't see them signaling that something weird was going on, either through special effects or through actors' reactions. When I saw Banquo (or who I guess was Banquo) at the banquet he had a spot on his face, but everyone carried on as if he were any other guest, as far as I could tell. I guess the witches' lair was sort of special effecty, but I interpreted the strobe lights and frenetic dancing as more a metaphorical altered state than a specific spooky thing, possibly because everyone participated equally, rather than Macbeth playing the straight man for it

[alexx_kay]

When the banquet is already being attended by a significant number of dead people and witches, the addition of one more ghost is less notable :)

The goat-headed demon and the bloody baby didn't strike you as supernatural?

I would estimate that there are on the rough order of fifty one-on-ones per night. I'm near-certain that there are fewer than a hundred. In an audience of 300, that's not so many. If you go several times, your odds go up, and there are steps you can take to further increase your chances.

[laura47]

from all i've read, going in expecting a play is the biggest cause of sadness with SNM. i warned all my companions when i went for my second time, which i still need to write up.

[new_man]

I think you would have been better served with a spoiler or two. Knowing what to expect a little more would have helped. Also, picking a character and following him/her -- even if you're not sure who the character is -- generates a more linear plot, and makes that part of the story easier to comprehend, even if it means sacrificing the other storylines.

The murder of Banquo is pretty spectacular and much like the pas de deux you describe. The Witches' Sabbath, which I think is Macbeth going back to see the witches, is bloody, ghastly, and supernatural.

Some of the theater is "interactive" in the "actors interact with the audience" sense. I've danced with one of the witches and had the porter sign me into The McKitterich Hotel, but yes -- for the most part it's no more interactive than a play on a stage. This one just has lots of stages. It's the "Choose Your Own Adventure" version of Macbeth.

[learnedax]

I did try to follow people some of the time - I caught most of Macbeth's loop at one time or another, and a fair amount of Lady Macbeth's. If I had already seen a certain scene once, I usually wouldn't stick around for it again, and I lost people fairly frequently due to large crowd sizes. I bet that would happen less if I were following a less central character.

The disco dance party was certainly... really weird. I guess, as I suggested to Alexx above, it didn't really read as supernatural to me because the whole thing was so surreal that it couldn't be tied back to reality at all. Maybe that's splitting hairs. For me that scene was less creepy than walking through the third floor - which, to be fair, doesn't really mean it wasn't supernatural.

[alexx_kay]

Even the less-central characters are a challenge to follow for long periods. Sometimes they run *fast*, and with little warning.

[eclecticmagpie]

One of your aspects of disappointment is one that I felt with "O, Brother, Where Art Thou?", which everyone described as being an updated retelling of the Odyssey, set in the '20s. Well, I loved that movie, but missed half the references to the Odyssey and was disappointed by the others. Even the over-arching theme of the main character trying to get back to his wife was vastly altered by the addition of a deadline. But I digress. I'm glad you got to see SNM, even if it was somewhat disappointing; I appear to have missed my chance and regret it, though I suspect I would have responded similarly to the way you did.

[rickthefightguy]

I agree on O Brother. It is not a retelling of the Odyssey. Its a movie by someone who had the Odyssey described to them many years ago.

As far as SNM, I describe it as a performance art/modern dance piece based loosely on Macbeth with some other inspirations thrown in. I loved it, by the way.

[new_man]

I loved it, by the way.

I was neither surprised by this nor by The Ax's lack of enthusiasm for it.

[new_man]

I also discovered (after the fact) that at least two of the players were missing on the night we were there -- Elsie (not so important; the other singer in the bar), and one of the witches. I didn't spend a lot of time with the witches on this run, but I'm sure it diminished some scenes.